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Monday, November 8, 2010

Copper: The Graduate

It was Valentines Day 2004 and it was going to be a special one for me! I was excited. I was getting a special gift. Copper was being delivered by his owner that morning. When they arrived, Copper was not on a leash. I mean, come on remember..."he was obedience trained."

When he was dropped off, along with him came a red ball about 10 inches in diameter. "This is Copper's, too," Matt said. As he handed it to me, I could see the excitement in Copper's eyes. "The social reject from the city would do well here," I kept telling myself. "He has had five different homes and was ONLY 10 months old." Interesting.

Like any new dog investigating any new territory, he ran around the yard, taking in all the sniffs with that big chest of his. He came into the house and did the same, racing from room to room with what appeared to be an insatiable appetite for "sniffs." But, remember, Copper was a "city dog."

I know I've told you the importance of taking your dog to obedience classes. When Copper came into my life, he was already 10 months old and had had 5 homes! The last owner told me that he was "obedience trained" and I had believed them. Apparently, Copper had forgotten all of his lessons!! However, being the diligent pet owner I am, I thought it would be a great bonding experience if I enrolled him in Obedience Class.

We attended all our classes. We were learning to work together. Copper's only "issue" was that he was "hyper" and very "alpha". He had so much energy all the time. But, I remembered something from years ago when attending Obedience Classes with my German Short Haired Pointer. "A tired puppy is a good puppy." It worked with my pointer, so I thought, why not? Each day we went to class, I worked on pooping out that boy, Copper! We played, we worked...all day long. I did not let him catch a break. And it worked!! By the time class would come, he sailed through the exercises with flying colors!! Here he is with his diploma...:)

Copper: The Graduate

Now that we had school under our belt, we could concentrate on every day life! Piece of cake, I thought.Come back tomorrow to follow Copper on his zany adventures!

Copper looks so proud with his graduation certificate. my son, took his Irish Springer Spaniel to school. Cost him $900.. Ouch~The best thing to get a hyper dog un-hyper is to excercise them . throw the ball over and over. that is what Izzy likes:)...Have a great day..ta ta for now from Iowa.. sunny and nice outside.. annieptigger@aol.com

REMEMBER...

"You own everything that happened to you. So, go ahead, tell your stories. If people wanted you to think warmly about them, they should have behaved better."....Anne Lamott

BE GRATEFUL...

Gratitude is not only the greatest of all virtues, it is the parent of all others.

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.~ Melody Beattie